AN: Whew. School is done. Now I can focus more on the development of this story! I fixed the previous chapters and made it so that they have lines in between some paragraphs to represent time skips or changes in point of view. Check them out if you wish. Anyways, on with the chapter!

Vin: I'm quite excited for that too. I've spent a bunch of time recently planning on how things like that will go. I'm glad you're enjoying this.

Chapter 5:

Adrien continued to sprint across the rooftops of paris. He decided to spend a few hours outside because sleep can wait. Then he heard something.

"Alright guys, do we have everything?"

"Yes."

"What about the blowtorch? The sledgehammer? The gun?"

"You got it."

"Alright, you are in charge of the getaway. The rest of us will go inside."

Adrien paused to listen in. What is this? Why would you need a blowtorch here of all places?

"Aww. Why can't I go in?" one of them said in a whiny voice.

"You're the best at driving. Now everyone else, move out and take what you can."

Oh, they're robbing the gas station. Adrien deduced as he saw the gang of four men in back jackets and ski masks herd into the store. He decided he could try and stop them. He had powers now, so why not try and stop them?

First, Adrien waited until the man in the van was distracted. How someone could be so careless, he doesn't know, but they had their music up really loud. Like, so loud that one can hear the lyrics loud and clear from across the street. Seriously, who does that? He took his baton, and popped the tires of their van by jamming it into the tires really hard. The baton itself isn't sharp but the sheer force was good enough. The loud music covered any noise he made. He then opened the back of the van as quietly as he could and waited in the corner.

The back of that car had all sorts of things hanging off the walls. There were weapons, extra ski masks, tools, and there was even a ziploc bag with different people's credit card information taped to the wall. Adrien heard the men scold the driver for having the music up so loud, then he hid in the corner. Swinging open the back doors, they hopped in the back and didn't look twice as they opened their duffle bags, most likely full of ATM and cash register money.

"Alright men, let's-" he was cut off. The mechanical whirr of the baton was present as Adrien's position was revealed. He stood up and put the baton over his shoulders.

"Sorry fellas. While robbing a gas station is convenient, It won't do you any good in jail." he added a pun because, why not.

The men started scrambling about, trying to get their tools and use them as attack weapons. One man had a gun but it was smacked out of his hands, another dropped the sledgehammer on his foot from the surprise and the other one got the blowtorch lit for a split second before being knocked unconscious. Adrien then looked to the driver.

"Please don't hurt me. Here." he said as he held out both of his arms. Adrien found some rope in the trunk then he tied the men together in the back of the van. He then used his baton to call the police.

A woman picked up immediately. "911 what's your emergency-"

"Hey, I've got a group of five men who just tried to rob the convenience store over here. I've got them taken care of. All you need to do is pick them up." he said and hung up.

Adrien waited on the rooftop as the police came to the adress slightly suspicious. The robbers didn't even think about struggling as they mumbled about glowing green eyes.

Adrien went back into his bedroom through his window. He thought for a second before remembering that you have to say 'claws in' to detransform. Plagg came out of the miraculous dramatically dragging himself to the minifridge that Adrien kept in his room. They still only had Cheddar, but it'll do for now. Camembert is too essential to forget about though.

"Alright kid. When do I get my Camembert?"

Adrien was too happy to complain about the cheese and just said that he'd order some.

"Is it real enough for ya now?"

"Nope. I'm still kind of afraid i'll wake up and today will be a dream. But for now, I need to go to bed." Adrien yawned as he got in his pajamas and got into his bed. Plagg looked at the digital clock at the side of the bed.

"Kid, it's two a.m., you're going to feel tired in the morning."

"I'm not worried about it. I'm going to sleep."

…

"Ok."

Marinette slept in. She only woke up when her mother went up to her room to see if she was awake. Tikki said she's been trying to wake her up but it was no use. So, Marinette got ready at lightning speed then gathered her things and darted to school. She made it just as the bell rang. Then plopped down in her seat next to Alya.

Mrs Bustier was not impressed, but didn't mark her late because technically she wasn't. Marinette sighed in relief as she tried to catch her breath.

"Girl, have you considered maybe waking up earlier?" Alya whispered.

"Tried. Still trying." Marinette said between gasps of air.

"Looks like the pretty boy is still here. I was going to introduce myself to him and that Nino kid this morning but you weren't there. Should we do it during lunch?"

Marinette finally caught her breath and nodded. She looked in front of her. Both boys seemed really happy. They were whispering between themselves and taking notes when the slide changed. Marinette hoped there wouldn't be an akuma during lunch so she can properly introduce herself.

Luckily, there wasn't one.

They went to lunch and got a tray of goop before sitting down. Alya spotted the two targets and smoothly asked if they could join them.

"Hey boys! We were wondering if we can sit next to ya."

"Sure thing dudettes!" Nino replied as Marinette and Alya sat across from them.

They put down their trays. Marinette decided now was the time to introduce herself.

"Hello. My name's Marinette. "

Adrien looked up at her.

"Well, I'm Adrien. Everyone probably knows that though huh."

"Yeah. I'm into fashion. How are you liking this school?"

"Love it. I was homeschooled my whole life so this is way different."

"Yeah dude," Nino chimed in after introducing himself to Alya. "I thought he wouldn't be able to come back today but now he's coming full time!"

Adrien chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck in an embarrassed manner.

"Yeah, I enrolled secretly and came without permission yesterday. I'm just happy I'm allowed to stay."

"Woah. That's exciting. What's homeschooling like? My parents have been against it for the longest time because they think children don't make many friends otherwise. Is that true?" Marinette asked curiously.

"Well yeah. It got really boring at times. My only friend until yesterday was Chloe."

"Oh."

"Yeah. She's always picked on people. I stopped hanging out with her as much as possible a few years ago. But, she helped me get into this school so I feel like I can't just ignore her now."

"Oh I see. Chloe's behavior got especially bad a couple years ago. About when we were fourteen? Is that right?" she looked over at Nino who nodded with a face that said it all.

"So, Marinette. How have things been for you? I saw that you stood up to her yesterday. Do I need to go and talk to her?" Adrien asked out of concern.

"Oh no. She hasn't bothered me since yesterday. Thanks for asking though."

He rubbed his neck again. "Oh good. Anyways, you said you're into fashion?"

"Yeah. I hope to be a designer one day. I personally think a lot of your father's work is a bit out there for my tastes though. I'd like to make more wearable and comfortable things you know?"

"Ha ha, yeah. I'm just glad I don't have to wear some of those myself."

They continued to talk as they ate their lunch. They talked about fashion trends, Nino's music, Alya's blog, etc. Nino and Alya joined their conversation after a few minutes. Alya teased Marinette and told her to show Adrien her sketches and Marinette said she would next time. Marinette had the sneaking suspicion it was Ivan's, but she wasn't supposed to know the words so she acted like she didn't know anything.

There was a pause while they finished their lunches, then the bell rang to signal their next class. They said their goodbyes and went their separate ways to get their things. Marinette was quite pleased with this conversation. She just met and spoke with Adrien Agreste for crying out loud! And based off of Alya's grin, she was too.

"Girl, we should join them more often! They're so cool! Does Nino make music just for fun or does he sell it too? He'd definitely good enough." She said excitedly.

"I think mostly for fun, but he does DJ for parties and does competitions once in a while. Hey, the song. I think it's Ivan's."

"I figured. It's soo good so far! Mylene's going to love it!"

"Yes she is." Marinette agreed as they walked to their next class. Then disaster struck.

The Akuma alarm sounded through the school. The new protocol was to find a safe place to hide and email your homeroom teacher when you are safe. They figured they didn't need to come up with anything too advanced since damage was reversed after Ladybug was done anyway. Adrien went to a corner and spoke to Plagg.

"Hey Plagg, do you think I should go help Ladybug?" Adrien wondered.

"I don't know. She looks like she's got it under control to me." Plagg said as he was nibbling on the cheese that arrived this morning.

"Well, since I'm a hero now, I feel like I need to do something."

Plagg thought for a moment. He knew Adrien would ask something like this, but he couldn't just forget about the plan. He then had a brilliant idea.

"Well then, how are you going to stop crime like you did last night if you exhaust yourself now? Let Ladybug handle this. You can do more good during the night anyway."

"You mean I can be like Batman and stop organized crime at night?"

"I'm sure you noticed the night vision right? I don't think this Ladybug has that. So, yes."

"That sounds exhausting though. When am I going to sleep?"

"Look kid, I can make your quality of sleep greater, so what sleep you do get will suffice. You want to or not?"

"Okay. Sounds like a plan. I better go find Nino." Adrien decided. Plagg cheered in his head. It worked with the plan, and with that he was relieved, not that he'd tell anyone of course.

They took off and looked around the school for Nino. They found him in an empty class room under the teacher's desk. Adrien squeezed in next to him.

"Are you watching the blog again Nino?" Adrien asked, even though it was fairly obvious.

"Yeah dude. This time she's battling a dude in a yellow jumpsuit that's jumping through paris. I don't think Alya will be able to catch much though." he said as she yelped into the phone, and got on her bike to catch up with them. She was failing miserably.

"Maybe Nadja is getting more?" Adrien suggested as he got out his phone and started looking it up.

Nadja wasn't having much luck either. She was in the helicopter once again but all that they were able to see were little flashes of light disappearing and reappearing all over the city.

Nino and Adrien switched between the ladyblog and the news station. Alya'd get a glimpse of the battle only to hop back on her bike and start pedaling as fast as she can once again. But, Alya was able to catch up to the point she was able to see Ladybug spray the akuma with a polka dotted hose then douse him in liquid nitrogen, resulting in the akuma being frozen to the ground.

"I never would have thought of that." Nino said in wonder as ladybug purified the butterfly and fixed the damage.

"I know. There might have been one of those ice cream vendors nearby?" Adrien wondered.

They watched again as ladybug did her little 'bug out' and left. Alya then turned the camera towards her and said farewell before cutting off the livestream. By then school was over and Adrien had to go to a photoshoot. Nino said his goodbyes and they went their separate ways.

Adrien didn't despise photoshoots, but he'd rather do something else with his time. It was in the park across the street so the photographers can get the school building in the background. This shoot was more on his family's life than fashion, so he posed for some photos and answered some questions from the magazine editors.

"So we heard you're going to Françoise Dupont. Was there anything in specific that made you want to go there?"

"Uh, just that I wanted to get more involved in the community." he responded in the way he thinks his father would have wanted him to.

"Are you sure it wasn't because living at home is constricting?"

They made prying questions like that while he was trying to pose for the shoot. His father's reputation has been dark and mysterious for quite some time and rumors have spread since he doesn't leave the house much. Adrien has looked at some himself and some of the stories are just awful. He was pulled from his musings from a light rumble in the sky. When did it get so overcast?

Everyone then packed up in a hurry to get home and Adrien called his bodyguard to pick him up.

"Hello? I'm done with my photoshoot."

"Yes Adrien." Adrien was surprised to hear that it was Natalie that picked up. She continued. "Your bodyguard called in sick today. Can you get a cab?"

"Yes Natalie." he said as he hung up. He dreaded getting someone else to drive him home in the rain. But, the Gorilla was really the only one his father trusted to drive. So, he started walking towards the street.

"Cheer up kid! Rain is great. It's cool, it waters the plants, it.." plagg started when he was interrupted.

"Are you just saying that to make me feel better?" Adrien asked.

"Yes. I actually hate the rain and you should get home as soon as possible." said a whiny voice.

Then, the sky decided to dump waterfalls worth of water onto every square inch of the city. Adrien ran into the closest building he saw, deciding he'd rather wait than catch a cold.

Adrien looked at his surroundings. He had run into the bakery he had gone to two days prior. He saw Tom come in from the kitchen and his face lit up for a split second before scrunching up in concern.

"Oh hello! Nice to see you again. Are you alright?" he said, looking at him.

"Nice to see you too. I hope you don't mind if I wait out this storm for a little while. It's raining cats and dogs out there!" Adrien asked.

"Wait, do you have a taxi or something to get you home?"

"Well, not yet. I had just barely exited the park when it started raining. I don't really want to go out there again to get a cab." he said as a chill came up his spine. It was only then Adrien realized how cold and wet he was. The cold water bit into his skin and his clothes clung to him uncomfortably.

"Papa? What's going on down here?" came a familiar voice from the door behind the counter.

"Oh, this boy came in for shelter from the rain." Tom said. She looked across the store and it was then Adrien recognised her.

"Hey Marinette." Adrien said as he did an awkward little wave.

"Adrien?! What were you doing outside? You're gonna get sick!" she said as she went over to him.

"I was out doing a thing for this magazine when it started raining cats and dogs." he said while he rubbed the back of his neck, silently cringing at how wet his hair was. Marinette sighed.

"Marinette? Do you know this boy?" Tom asked.

"Oh yeah. This is Adrien from my class."

"Oh this is a pleasant surprise. You told me you were going to the same school as my daughter, but I didn't think you guys would be in the same class! That's great!"

"Yeah. It's a pretty great class if I do say so myself." Adrien proudly said.

This caused marinette to pause. "Wait. You guys know each other?"

"Acquaintances. He came in on the first day of school." Tom replied.

"Yup." Adrien said. "The cheese bread was so good."

"Only the best. Now, we need to get you dry before you catch a cold." Marinette said as she started dragging Adrien behind the counter and up the stairs.

"Wait, Marinette. You don't have to." Adrien tried to decline.

"It's better just to let her son. Otherwise she'll freak out." Tom said. "I'll be down here if you need anything."

"Thanks papa." Marinette replied. Adrien then gave up and decided that he better just take what comes.

Marinette led him to their living room and darted off to another room. She threw a towel at his head and started moving again.

"I have a pair of sweats I keep for times like this. I'll be right back." she said as she flew up another set of stairs. Adrien then dried off his hair while he took a brief look around the room. It was much more homely than his house. The kitchen was small, but cute and cosy. There were pictures on the bookcase as well as books that look like they've actually been read.

Marinette came back down with a large hoodie and a pair of joggers in her hands. "Alright. I usually keep these in case one of my friends has an accident of some kind at school. Most of the time it's Alex and Kim getting into a food fight though. I'm going to let you borrow them, alright?"

Adrien was in awe as he nodded and was shown the way to the bathroom. She must really care for her friends to be this prepared. It must happen a lot from the looks of things. The hoodie was slightly worn and one of the pockets of the joggers looked like it had been sewn back together multiple times, but they were comfortable and would be more than enough to get home. He put them on and headed back out.

Marinette was there waiting for him with a smile on her face.

"Alright. I think the rain has stopped for the time being. Do you have money for a cab?" she said as she had him put his damp clothes in a plastic bag.

"Yeah. Thank you so much Marinette. You are amazing." Adrien replied.

"No problem." she said as she simultaneously grabbed an umbrella from a rack and led him down the stairs.

"You ready? Are you all good?" Tom asked.

"I'm great. Thanks guys." He said as he was handed the umbrella. He walked outside and felt for rain. But before he went anywhere he felt something, or someone run into him from behind. He turned around to ask what was the matter.

"Marinette-?" he was cut off as she wrapped her arms around him in a big hug.

"Be safe." She let go of him with an adorable grin on her face. She then waved him goodbye as she went back inside.

Adrien was then stuck there for a few minutes trying to figure out what just happened. When it did a blush crept up onto his cheeks.

"Well look what we have here. A smitten kitten." Plagg said as he popped up from the hood.

Adrien laughed, full knowing what is happening, but he was too happy to care.

"You can't blame me though. She's amazing."

AN: And there we have it folks. Sorry it took so long. There was just a lot happening in this one and I wanted it to be as good as I can make it. Not to mention school is now over for me. Also, I think a lot of the designs on Gabriel's tablet thing are atrocious. Let me know what you think and I hope y'all enjoyed it.